Now I know this is going to be tough but how would you guys flange this part?
I was thinking of a 2 part mold with the flange along each side at the widest point. This would then make a ‘top’ and ‘bottom’ to join together. Any other ideas?
ya that’s a tough one…how does it mount up?
do you need to spread it apart quite a bit to mount it up? I know my RC51 tail section needs quite a bit of spreading to get it over the subframe. It would be better not to be spreading it stressing along the flange part line…
you are going to make it out of 2 parts and then glue the 2 final parts together for the complete tail right?
I make a similar part for GSXr’s and its a 3 part mold due to additional lights and scoops PITA!!
for that one though I would go with what you are thinking, top and bottom sections and join post mold and trim.
sorry to jack but it’s still kind of on topic
when you join post molding, do you just put a thin bead of epoxy along the edge of the part or do you add some layers of glass on the inside for a bit of extra hold?
Don’t bother flanging it, just ship it to me and i’ll take it off your hands for free of charge lol 
R1 tail looks like a 2002 tail fairing.
I’m flanging up an F4i tail now. To say how to do it is complicated without seeing it done in person.
You flange it down the middle with mdf wood, screw the mdf from the underside of the fairing into the wood mdf. Flanging it lengwise like your talking is asking for problems. If it has an undertail fairing you make that a seperate part/mold. But that you probably already know. Also ditch the white foamboard you have stuck in the seat area, don’t need it.
In a couple days i’ll show you an F4i tail all flanged up.
Luckily there is no spreading at all to mount this one up. It mounts to the subframe using tabs on the top (pictured below). There are also some small tabs on the underside to mount the seperate undertray to.
Fastrr, I’d be very interested to see what you’ve already done, there is a YAMAHA sticker on the top of this unit above the rear light opening and I was hoping to incorporate that into the mold. I think flanging down the middle might make that difficult with the 2 halves joining up exactly. Not too much of a problem though and if that’s the easiest way to do it that’s the way I’ll go.
Yes, this one is an 02 R1 tail unit.
Thanks for the responses guys.
No problem, once i get that far ( this weekend ) i will post up some pics. Here are some teazer pics for now.
This is also a good part for me to use the new epoxy tooling dough.
I was going to say two parts but Fastrr answer with the best photo so I think aaharvey you must done it with that way. I do the same for the Hayabusa.
Fastrr, if you screw the mdf into the fairing how do you remove it when you have to make the other side of the mold? won’t there be screw holes that you will have to fill in before you can laminate over the other side?
Yes, there will be holes. I fill those in with modeling clay before i will do the other half of the mold.
ok I see…
yes, two or more layers of glass cloth or CSM on the inside to bond together, some filler (if needed, prime and paint 
What do you do if you don’t want to paint over the pretty carbon? How do you make the seam visually satisfying?
gel coat, sand, polish?
you got it, there will obviously be a seam still but…
you could always paint a stripe or something down the middle or make a full fiberglass peice then overlay the whole thing (that would be a paint though)
oh you guys are talkin’ about making a two piece part then “gluing” it together for that tail fairing?
you have a huge seam doing it that way.
^ that’s how i would do it…
Actually what you did with the foam board is good. I’ll post pics of the F4i tail i just finished flanging up today using some thin aluminum sheetmetal, foam board, and foil tape. No hot glue on this one…didn’t need it. My damn camera batteries are not working so i’ll have to buy some new ones today or tomorrow. I’ll post pics then…it’s kinda interesting looking. My mold will be two pieces, but the part will be once piece, no seems to glue/fiberglass together.
Sorry for taking so long and you may not need this info now, but here it is.
F4i tail all flanged on one half and nearly ready for mold making for this one side half. I do notice now a couple areas that are going to create mold lock so i will fix those before i make the mold. Also i have to be fast about making plugs so it’s not the pretiest plug you will ever see. The flanges are made of aluminum sheet metal, aluminum foil tape, and mdf. On the backside of the metal flange i supported it with popsicle sticks and foil tape to stiffen the flange.
http://s210.photobucket.com/albums/bb186/Fastrr_photos/?action=view¤t=F4itailplug.jpg
All very useful, thanks for the responses.
I haven’t got round to doing much with this yet because I’m still making the swingarm cover plugs and now I’ve got some wiring to contend with! The last owner made a right mess of removing an alarm on my bike and now I’m left to tidy things up!
Here’s whats been greeting me in the garage for the last 3 nights, I mostly spend a few hours scratching my head and then go and sit in front of the TV
